A warning to the sensitive, due to the nature of the song and lyrics there may be explicit or offensive language throughout this post, reader/viewer discretion advised.
I came across a fan made video, for Kanye’s New Slaves and immediately so many thoughts popped into my head, I haven't been much of a Kanye fan as of late, especially with most of his comments and crying to the media lately I've been pretty put off by him overall. With that being said there were only about 4 songs on the album, "Yeezus" (the title in itself is a blog for another day), that I actually can say I can tolerate, one being "new slaves". The concept of the song is redundant if you are a follower of Christian Rappers, such as Lecrae or Trip Lee, but at the same time profound in a world where secular rappers still find pride, power, validation, and joy in material things. Even if you have heard songs like "heart problem" by Trip Lee, or "Cash or Christ" by 116 Clique, the way Kanye blatantly puts the "new slave" mentality out there seems different, possibly because he is not under the same limitations and constraints or the "rules" for Christian hip-hop, he is free to speak his mind, and he does.
Kanye lays it all out in the first verse. Particularly, what stood out to me was the line "all you blacks want all the same things". That line is first prefaced by a brief history pre-civil rights, of the clean water and luxuries reserved for the fairer skin, (read white), followed by what he calls new era racism which is still based on color but now based on two different categories, broke and rich. While I don't know if there is a certain racism in high end product stores, I have experienced when sales representatives in high end product stores treat you as if you can't afford anything in the store, I have also been on the other side of the spectrum when these places push you to buy more. In some ways I can identify with Kanye's ideas of what he calls "broke, rich n*gga racism, although I would better classify the entire thought as classism and I don't think it's generally based in race although some will look at minorities and automatically assume they are lower class, I don’t think with so many minorities rising in economic classes I don’t think this is a universally held perspective, but I could be wrong. Either way, I resonated with those lines as the images of slaves picking cotton and “for colored only” signs and store fronts flashed across the screen, while evaluating my own wants and desires of fashion and the "American Dream" I started to think is it true do all minorities really want the same things, do we all want expensive cars, flashy jewelry, and clothes most of us could never really afford.
Though that may be true for some I wonder what Kanye is doing to destroy this mentality, after all he was the one selling $150 plain white tees or as he named them hip-hop tees which are clearly marketed for the hip-hop community which is largely supported by minorities. His sneakers, the Nike AIR Yeezy 1&II all sold for prices that rival Jordan brand, and while Kanye says he doesn’t set the prices the manufactures do. I like to think he has some say so in the distribution and sale of items with his name stamped on the label. Let’s not forget his latest rants on the sway in the morning show and Power 105.1 Breakfast club of how he is basically being blacklisted and in his words “put into a box” in the fashion industry.
So I ask myself how could a man who creates a song like New Slaves turn around and fight to put more people into material enslavement. That isn’t really a question I can answer since I don’t know Kanye personally, I couldn’t even imagine what goes through his head. The song however, has given us something to think about, something to talk about, it is an eye opener to the minority community and the U.S. as a whole about the dangers of consumerism, while other countries fight for religious freedom, wars for or against terrorism, poverty, disease, America fights for Jordan Retros and iPads.
Kanye also touches on that a bit in the second verse of the song saying “the DEA teamed up with the CCA, they try lock n*ggas up they tryna make new slaves” and that brings on a different thought, with the exposure of the PRISM project and all conspiracies surrounding the government moving us smack dab in the middle of George Orwell's "1984", it makes you wonder if we really are becoming New Slaves, not just minorities but all Americans. America is moving into an age of Consumerism never before seen in history, even the American government itself is falling ill to astronomical debt. No matter your feelings on Kanye West or his self centered ways of entitlement you have to admit, he could be onto something with this New Slaves idea, and so I ask everyone what do you think are your eyes open to the dangers of consumerism, has Kanye's song made brought you enlightenment, let’s talk about this. There’s a saying light up the darkness and expose what’s right in front of you. Despite the bad language and somewhat offensive lyrics, Kanye is doing one thing right, he’s lighting up the darkness, Check out the video after the Jump and leave a comment on your thoughts of the video, or the song, as a whole.
Lyrics posted for context and understanding.
Though that may be true for some I wonder what Kanye is doing to destroy this mentality, after all he was the one selling $150 plain white tees or as he named them hip-hop tees which are clearly marketed for the hip-hop community which is largely supported by minorities. His sneakers, the Nike AIR Yeezy 1&II all sold for prices that rival Jordan brand, and while Kanye says he doesn’t set the prices the manufactures do. I like to think he has some say so in the distribution and sale of items with his name stamped on the label. Let’s not forget his latest rants on the sway in the morning show and Power 105.1 Breakfast club of how he is basically being blacklisted and in his words “put into a box” in the fashion industry.
So I ask myself how could a man who creates a song like New Slaves turn around and fight to put more people into material enslavement. That isn’t really a question I can answer since I don’t know Kanye personally, I couldn’t even imagine what goes through his head. The song however, has given us something to think about, something to talk about, it is an eye opener to the minority community and the U.S. as a whole about the dangers of consumerism, while other countries fight for religious freedom, wars for or against terrorism, poverty, disease, America fights for Jordan Retros and iPads.
Kanye also touches on that a bit in the second verse of the song saying “the DEA teamed up with the CCA, they try lock n*ggas up they tryna make new slaves” and that brings on a different thought, with the exposure of the PRISM project and all conspiracies surrounding the government moving us smack dab in the middle of George Orwell's "1984", it makes you wonder if we really are becoming New Slaves, not just minorities but all Americans. America is moving into an age of Consumerism never before seen in history, even the American government itself is falling ill to astronomical debt. No matter your feelings on Kanye West or his self centered ways of entitlement you have to admit, he could be onto something with this New Slaves idea, and so I ask everyone what do you think are your eyes open to the dangers of consumerism, has Kanye's song made brought you enlightenment, let’s talk about this. There’s a saying light up the darkness and expose what’s right in front of you. Despite the bad language and somewhat offensive lyrics, Kanye is doing one thing right, he’s lighting up the darkness, Check out the video after the Jump and leave a comment on your thoughts of the video, or the song, as a whole.
Lyrics posted for context and understanding.
"New Slaves"
[Verse 1:]
My momma was raised in an era when,
Clean water was only served to the fairer skin
Doing clothes you would have thought I had help
But they wasn't satisfied unless I picked the cotton myself.
You see it's broke nigga racism
That's that "Don't touch anything in the store"
And there's rich nigga racism
That's that "Come here, please buy more"
What you want a Bentley, fur coat and diamond chain?
All you blacks want all the same things
Used to only be niggas now everybody play me
Spending everything on Alexander Wang
New Slaves
[Hook:]
2X
[Verse 2:]
I throw these Maybach keys
I wear my heart on the sleeve
I know that we the new slaves
I see the blood on the leaves
I see the blood on the leaves
I see the blood on the leaves
I know that we the new slaves
I see the blood on the leaves
They throwing hate at me
Want me to stay at ease
Fuck you and your corporation
Y'all niggas can't control me
I know that we the new slaves
I know that we the new slaves
I'm about to wild the fuck out
I'm going Bobby Boucher
I know that pussy ain't free
You niggas pussy, ain't me
Y'all throwing contracts at me
You know that niggas can't read
Throw on some Maybach keys
Fuck it, c'est la vie
I know that we the new slaves
Y'all niggas can't fuck with me
Y'all niggas can't fuck with Ye
Y'all niggas can't fuck with Ye
I'll move my family out the country
So you can't see where I stay
So go and grab the reporters
So I can smash their recorders
See they'll confuse us with some bullshit like the New World Order
Meanwhile the DEA
Teamed up with the CCA
They tryna lock niggas up
They tryna make new slaves
See that's that private owned prison
Get your piece today
They Probably all in the Hamptons
Braggin' 'bout their maid
Fuck you and your Hampton house
I'll fuck your Hampton spouse
Came on her Hampton blouse
And in her Hampton mouth
Y'all 'bout to turn shit up
I'm 'bout to tear shit down
I'm 'bout to air shit out
Now what the fuck they gon' say now?
lyrics provided by atozlyrics.com
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